Eric Goodman is the inventor of Foundation Training. I met Eric in 2010 when he was traveling in Costa Rica with a mutual friend, we surfed, hit it off and then he changed my life… literally. I have a bad back; between 2006 and 2010 I had consistent pain and some numbness in my feet. I thought I was headed for spinal fusion, I had actually made a trip to the states to interview doctors, and then I met Eric.

Through his Foundation Training exercises and philosophy I retaught my body how to move correctly. After four months of diligent training I was asymptomatic. This is a BIG deal for anyone with back issues, but it goes way beyond that…

Now I use Foundation to to supplement rigorous physical training so I can surf 100% while staying injury free.

This is an episode to pay attention to… there are a lot of lessons and I’m sure something will apply to you. In producing the show I have listened to it now 3 times and each time I pulled out some new fact. The show notes will have links to Foundation Training, videos of the Foundation exercises, and the Kettle bell exercises we discuss.

Thank you guys so much for positive feedback from the show… I just did free pdf guide, “how to do man hacks”, head over to progressionpro.wpengine.com and sign up for the newsletter and I’ll send you that guide. Hint, its all in the paddle.

This episode is brought to you by Blue Zone SUP, www.bluezonesup.com, we just released dates for July, I know it’s late, but Oscar just a baby last week, congrats brother!!! and Rich is nursing an injury, and the CR sup contest schedule was just finalized, and I didn’t want a camp to conflict as Oscar and I are both doing the circuit. July 6th and 18th are the start dates. Email me at erik@paddlewoo.com for more information.

0:15 – Eric Goodman has trained Kelly Slater, Dane Reynolds, Lakey Peterson and the championship Laker’s team
1:57 – Thanks for the positive feedback, get your Man Hack guide by subscribing
2:30 – Blue Zone Sup camp dates, July 6-12th and 19th-26th
3:10 – Thanks for being here Eric Goodman
3:30 – Eric explains Foundation Training, isometric and dynamic postures, body should be strong against itself
4:20 – How Eric started training pro surfers. Lakey Peterson was the first. Dr. Tim Brown is Eric’s friend
5:20 – Surfers shared it amongst themselves, Johnny Gannon (Taj’s trainer) is a certified trainer
6:05 – Why is Foundation Training important to surfers?
6:40 – Erik explains how he and Eric Goodman know each other, and how Goodman helped Antonson
7:20 – Prone paddling hyperextends back and neck
7:45 – Prone decompression – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmhu-yZGY_A – lengthens neck, counters constricting nature of extension
8:50 – What problems occur from compression? back pain and decrease in organ function from nerve problems
10:10 – Standup Paddling counters prone paddling issues if done correctly
10:45 – Correct Paddling technique, hips and shoulders pull away from each other on reach of paddle, should use hamstrings and gluts, bigger, stronger muscles.
12:00 – Muscles do one thing, they pull, if you want to get really efficient in a movement, learn how to get as many muscles as possible pulling. Remember, the strongest muscles in your body are oriented around your pelvis, the core of your body is above and below your pelvis, this is where most movement comes from.
13:45 – Pretty muscles vs. Strong Muscles – big is your enemy, big muscles limit you
14:25 – If your muscles are really big and heavy it is going to suck to do most movements
14:40 – How can we get stronger without gaining mass?
15:30 – Eric talks Cross Fit (crossfit.com)
16:05 – If you want to do high intensity weight training, you need to counter that with intense stretching
16:30 – When you surf, you want to have long muscles, opposite of bench press, curls, ect…
17:20 – Better way to get really strong is to combine body weight movements with breathing exercises (decompression breathing)
18:00 – Foundation is one way to get stronger, yoga is a great tool, better for men than women, goal is strong and flexible
18:30 – Indo board, balance tools.
18:50 – Balance is the process of your muscles learning to react before your brain is telling them to react
19:20 – Postural exercises are the most important component of strength in the human body
20:00 – Best exercises to stay injury free for surfing, Eric challenges everyone to spend one week doing prone decompression
20:40 – Founder (note from host… I do this exercise EVERY day)
21:10 – Basic planking, stomach should fail first, 8 point plank
22:00 – Very slow pullups and pushup, using whole body, Pushup video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcJHbV0v11w
22:45 – Kettle bells, Turkish Getups, Goblet Squats, Swings
23:20 – Kettlebelling as a new word, Kettlebells are best resistance training you can do
24:20 – If you do kettle bell swing correctly, it will make your whole body strong
24:50 – Certifications and degrees don’t mean that someone gets it
25:20 – Turkish getup is an incredible exercise (My personal favorite)
25:50 – Erik Antonson does kettle bell training 3 times per week.
26:30 – People think strength only responds to resistance, this is wrong
27:00 – More hormone response from weight
27:20 – Does SUP surfing change your balance perspective? BOSU/Indo boards?
28:50 – More balance equals more neural pathways, which is good for SUP
29:30 – SUP surfing helps shortboarding, reflexive mind
30:00 – As the body is challenged it gets better
31:00 – Eric talks training with Laird Hamilton, he got the invite through Gabby Reese, who is a fan of Foundation Training
31:30 – Laird can hold his breath for a long time, they jump in ice baths
32:00 – Laid understands how the body works and is the best athlete that Eric has worked with (this includes pros and olympians)
32:25 – Laird Hamilton trains his stress response, has a following of folks who want to train with him
33:00 – Eric helps Laird at times when he asks for it
33:20 – Takeaways from training with Laird, more Apnea training under stress, 12 foot pool training with weights
34:00 – Doing crazy stuff to teach your body to relax
34:20 – No body come close to Laird in training
34:50 – Any interesting exercises Laird is doing? one-legged patient exercises, go slow to be strong
35:40 – What can we focus on, takeaway from the show? How we lift up our heads. Most folks try to look up with the muscles in the back of the neck. Look up from your chest, not hyperextending the spine. Lift your head with more muscles.
37:20 – Best muscles to train for explosive surfing? Core, which is any muscle that connects to the pelvis
38:30 – You have to master body weight before moving on to weight
38:50 – Least training you need out of the water to stay healthy, 5-15 minutes per day
39:30 – Can you train everyday? When to take days off?
40:15 – It is silly to always try to get stronger, need to push then relax, stay stronger, recover more
40:50 – Tangible application of rest and training
41:15 – If you are always physical, you need to get in recovery time, naps, massage, ect…
41:40 – If all you do is surf, you need to add a routine, it will catch up to you
42:05 – Foam rolling, Eric isn’t a huge fan, he likes Erik’s application, a few minutes to warm up
42:40 – As you go further down the limb, the less pressure you can apply before you get tissue damage
43:15 – Roll gluts and IT bands for a few minutes for a week and see how you feel
44:50 – Eric talks putting foam rolling in his first book against his better judgement
45:20 – New book on philosophy of movement coming out next year
45:40 – Karen Rinaldi, great mutual friend, is Eric’s publisher, We love you Karen
46:20 – Erik puts Eric on the spot to do a video podcast when he’s here in Nosara in November
47:00 – Eric’s closing thoughts.. he loves teaching people, go learn Foundation Training